The Nut Job (2014)

Number Rolled: 44

Movie Name/Year: The Nut Job (2014)

Genre: Comedy

Length: 85 minutes

Rating: PG

Affiliated Companies: Gulfstream Pictures, Red Rover International, ToonBox Entertainment

Executive Producer: Hongjoo Ahn, William Bindley, Hoe Jin Ha, Mike Karz, Hong Kim, Hyungkon Kim, Daniel Woo, Tom Yoon

Director: Peter Lepeniotis

Writer: Lorne Cameron, Peter Lepeniotis, Robert  Reece, Daniel Woo

Actors: Will Arnett, Brendan Fraser, Liam Neeson, Katherine Heigl, Stephen Lang, Maya Rudolph, Jeff Dunham, Gabriel Iglesias, Sarah Gadon, Robert Tinkler

Surly Squirrel and his friend, Buddy the rat, are outcasts in the park. Surly insists that he only looks out for himself and no one else. On the day a nut cart shows up on the edge of the territory, he has to find a way to beat the other animals to the huge score.

I found The Nut Job mildly entertaining. The story was a basic heist-like story, but it was thinned out for kids. The characters left a lot to be desired. Even as a child, I’m pretty certain I wouldn’t have been able to relate to Surly Squirrel and, as the main character, that’s kind of important.

The film made it to my Netflix list because it has two of my favorite comedians in it: Jeff Dunham (Dinner for Schmucks, Delta Farce) and Gabriel Iglesias (Magic Mike, Planes). Of course, I wasn’t sad to see Brendan Fraser (Hair Brained, Escape from Planet Earth) and Liam Neeson (Taken, A Million Ways to Die in the West) on the list of credits either. As far as the voice acting goes, it wasn’t overdone and did as much for the movie as possible, but couldn’t really elevate The Nut Job to the next level.

Truthfully, the credits were the best part.

I’m not being snarky and saying that to mean that I looked forward to the ending. I mean, what they did with the credits was hilarious and I enjoyed watching it more than I enjoyed the movie.

Although The Nut Job might not be the best choice for adults, it’s definitely strong enough and entertaining enough for the little ones.

Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score – 10%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score – 45%

Netflix’s Prediction for Me – 2.9/5

Trust-the-Dice Score – 2/5

P.S. There are 2 parts to the credits and there is a scene after each part.

Movie Trailer: